J Living

Photo: Center of the Sun Necklace by artist Britta Ambauen. Moms may be some of the hardest people on the planet to buy for. If you ask them what they want for Mother’s Day, their response will usually be, “just your love.” If you are looking for something to complement the love (or flowers) you…

Jodi Bromberg, CEO of InterFaith Family shared this poignant message after Saturday’s tragedy in Poway. I struggled with writing this note to you. Another synagogue, another shooting, another person dead and more wounded. First Pittsburgh, then New Zealand and Sri Lanka, and now, Poway, a short distance away from San Diego. Ma nishtana? What’s different?…

April marks the end of nearly two months of Violins of Hope programming. I am proud that federation supported this important project spearheaded by two amazing leaders and supporters of Federation, Julee Landau Shahon and Rachel Hoffer. I continue to be deeply moved by the collaborative spirit of the 30 organizations, both Jewish and non-Jewish,…

Hipster or Hasidic? There’s no need to chose sides when you wear a shirt from Schmattees, a new apparel line whose designs combine a little bit of cheekiness and a whole lot of chutzpah.The 10-piece line of humorous t-shirts and sweatshirts combine Jewish culture and rituals, Yiddish expressions, eye-catching graphic design with current meme-linguistics. Slogans such as “If You Can’t Say Anything Nice…Say It In Yiddish”, “Happy…

The parenting journey is a long and arduous one that requires more physical stamina than Superman, more psychological expertise than Freud and the financial resources of Jeff Bezos. At each age and stage of our children’s lives, we encounter and maneuver different joys, struggles and unknowns hoping that we can offer them the appropriate skills,…

Genocide Awareness Week is a series of lectures, exhibits and storytelling by distinguished survivors, scholars, politicians, activists, artists, humanitarians and members of law enforcement. This week-long event seeks to address how we, as a global society, confront violent actions and current and ongoing threats of genocide throughout the world, while also looking to the past…

Purim is a celebration of Jewish deliverance. It recognizes Queen Esther’s courage to come forward as a Jew and convince her husband, the King of Persia, to spare her people from the extermination planned by the prime minister, Haman, who felt the Jewish leader Mordechai slighted him. As punishment, for his crimes, the bodies of…

If you’re looking for love this Valentine’s Day, don’t forget the grocery store. You might just pick up a date and the ingredients for a successful date night. According to a survey commissioned by ALDI, 32 percent of adults have gone on a date with someone they met at a grocery store or know…

As things began to turn in Germany in the 1930s, both sets of my grandparents made the brave decision to leave behind their homes and all they knew to start anew in America. This past summer, as part of the Federation mission to Berlin and Budapest, I was the first member of my family to…